


heroism

by Molnija



Category: Fire Emblem: Kakusei | Fire Emblem: Awakening
Genre: Gen, Minor Character Death, Pre-Canon, future timeline, protect Cynthia at all costs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-08
Updated: 2016-02-08
Packaged: 2018-05-19 04:48:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,239
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5954196
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Molnija/pseuds/Molnija
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>To Cynthia, her mother was a hero.</p>
            </blockquote>





	heroism

**Author's Note:**

> This is kinda old, but I only now got around to translate it from German. (I probably messed up some parts, idk.)
> 
> I love Cynthia almost as much as I love Sumia. Sometimes more, depending on my mood. FE:A CHILDREN MAKE ME FEEL SO MANY THINGS THE TEARS ARE REAL
> 
> It's Henry!Cynthia, Vaike!Cordelia, Chrom!Morgan & FMU!Lucina, and the others are never mentioned with any hints of who their father could be, so. I just went with the pairings I have in my main file, because most of these happen to be my favourites and it's the easiest. (I apparently had awesome taste when I played the game for the first time, huh.)
> 
> One day, I will write a real Cynthia/Severa fic, today is not that day.

_Mama! Mama, you’re the best! I love you sooo much! You and Papa and I, we’ll stay together forever, alright?_

 

To Cynthia, her mother was a hero.      

Sumia always helped those in need and faced any task clumsily, but with great enthusiasm. No matter if there was a fight that needed to be stopped or bandits were attacking the town, she was always there to solve any problem. Everyone who didn’t stand between her and those she loved liked her, and Cynthia was sure that even her enemies were secretly only jealous of how great she was.          

Cynthia also admired her father, Henry, whose strange magic made her laugh and gape and who was always there for her, but her mother, the admirable pegasus knight who was as beautiful as she was strong, no, there was certainly nobody who could match her! 

She had made it her very own task to become like her mother. Pegasi, two of them, were already standing in the family’s stables and Cynthia showed great talent wielding the lance already, so the only thing left was helpfulness and she surely had that. More and more often she would accompany her mother with her daily strolls through the small town they lived in and helped however she could. Of course, she would never surpass her mother, but at least she could try! Together, they could be an unbeatable duo, and Sumia’s childhood friend Cordelia could join them, too … A pegasus trio! Only Cordelia’s unspeakable daughter who never did anything but complain could stay home. Although Severa could also play a villain for Cynthia to fight – because every hero needed an opponent!             

But one day, before she could make this plan a reality, somebody knocked on the door of their little house. The twelve year old girl with the short silver pigtails opened and gaped at the two members of the Ylissean army standing in front of her who asked for her mother.         

Three years ago, Chrom, the prince and ruler of Ylisse and a friend of the family, had been killed, so much she knew. She also knew that her mother and even her father had been affected deeply by those news. His wife had also disappeared without a trace and their two children were now considered orphans, which definitely did not help. But after a while, life had gone back to normal.       

Thus, it surprised her even more when her mother told her that she had been called to a mission, one on which she would stop the ever growing problems with Risen near Regna Ferox along with other soldiers, all of which had once belonged to Chrom’s Shepherds.          

“It won’t be for long,” Sumia assured her, but the sad expression on her daughter’s face seemed to tell her exactly how she felt. “Cynthia, please don’t worry. I’ll be back soon! We’ve been through worse, so we’ll deal with this. And Cordelia’s there too, nobody has ever defeated us!     

And she believed her words.

Five days later, a messenger visited the house, saying that Sumia and all her comrades-in-arms had fallen in battle, and the world fell apart.

 

_Mama, the people say that you’re dead! But that can’t be, it can’t! I’m sure you’ll return soon, heroes don’t die, after all! Mama … Don’t leave me alone …_

_Please come back, Mama …_

 

The Risen fell to the ground with a terrible moan and finally dissolved, the dark particles it left fading in the wind. Triumphant, Cynthia thrust her iron lance into the air. 

“Oh, however can I thank you?” the old man’s voice resounded. He had just been attacked by this creepy thing on the street in the middle of the day. Thankfully, she had seen it soon enough to hurry over on her Pegasus and finish off the undead monster before it could hurt its supposed victim. “And may I know your name?”

She turned towards the bearded old man walking on a stick with a big smile on her face and recited the words she had pondered over for several long nights. “I am the great Cynthia, feared by many and loved by more! And there’s no reason to thank me,” she added quickly, “protecting people is my job, after all.”          

The man seemed surprised and took a closer look at her. “You don’t look like a pegasus knight from the army, at least I can’t see an emblem.”              

Cynthia shook her head. “No, I’m not part of the army.”            

“So why did you say it’s your job?” She seemed to confuse the old man more and more. Not really heroic! Even though mysterious heroes had their very own kind of charm, she preferred it when people knew what had just happened. It was nice to believe in a miracle, but even nicer to know that there was no miracle needed!

“I am a hero,” she explained, head held high. “Have you ever heard of Sumia? You know, the awesome pegasus knight, who used to be part of the Shepherds. I mean, not Cordelia … The brown-haired one in purple.”         

It still hurt to mention her mother. Two years had passed since Sumia’s death and one since she had lost her father, too, and it had gotten easier to bear the pain, but she still dreamt of Risen and strange shadows that circled her parents and took their life.

The situation in Ylisse and, from what she had heard, Ferox had been worsening. More and stronger Risen showed up and took everything they wanted – even though they were dead and probably had no use for most of it – including the lifes of those who didn’t hide well enough or managed to fight them off. 

But it was especially in times like these when you needed people who could make you get your good night’s sleep, knowing that someone out there was fighting for the good! Ever since her mother’s death, Cynthia had taken over her role and made it her task to protect and fight for the people everywhere she went.

One day, the whole world would know her as Cynthia, the wings of justice. And everbody who was afraid or weak would be able to come to her and she would help them. That was truly heroic!

 

_Mama … Can you hear me? I know you can! I miss you so much, Mama … But you know what? I’ll never be as great as you, but I want to try and be a hero too! A real hero who helps everyone and fights for justice, just like you!_

 

War had come over Ylisse.

There was no other way to say it by now. Cynthia was seventeen years old now and Ylisstol had long fallen. Queen Lissa was still alive, but the castle resembled a battlefield more than anything.

“Ugh, how I hate this …”             

Severa and Cynthia sat in the secret catacombs Cynthia had found with Owain and Morgan when things had been so much easier, treating their wounds. They weren’t the only ones injured; the groans of hurt soldiers and sobs of those who had lost a loved one could be heard in every corner. The sound of the battle echoed down to them, dull through the thick walls and floor of the throne room directly above this sanctuary. Lucy was up there right now and trying to put an end to this chaos, but Cynthia doubted her success. She was amazing, that wasn’t it, Lucy always seemed unbeatable, but Cynthia had been up there and … She had never seen so many strong Risen at once. Even the usually optimistic girl had to admit just how inferior Ylisse was, especially in numbers.

“We must not give up!” she still said and tried sounding as enthusiastic as ever. “I mean, those mean monsters have got to get tired sooner or later. And then we strike!”

Severa rolled her eyes. “Yeah, of course, and then they’ll go home and sing each other lullabies. Gods, Cynthia, even you can’t be that stupid. Though … Realism has never been your strength, huh. ”

“Hey, if you keep talking like this you’ll only give me a reason to believe this is all your fault, you super villain!” Cynthia shouted and received a death glare plus a demonstrative “shut up” from Brady, who was currently trying to take care of the injured with way to few other healers. In a way lower voice, she added, “You can only become stronger by fighting together, so be nicer to me and we might stand a chance.”     

Severa wiped the blood of a wound on her forehead that coloured her blond bangs a crimson red. “There _is_ no such thing as a chance, don’t you get that? It’s all over.”       

“We must not give up”, Cynthia repeated her own words. “Those who give up have already lost!”

“No, those who have lost have lost. Those who give up can at least run away and save their own hide. That’s what our parents should have done back then, too.”      

Their parents … Severa had always been envious of her mother, but Cynthia knew she had still loved Cordelia, just as much as she herself still loved Sumia. The words uttered by the mercenary just now had sounded bitter, but lacked the usual mean tone, instead seeming … Disappointed. Disappointed that her parent’s weren’t with her anymore.

She didn’t answer anymore, couldn’t if she had wanted to, because in this moment, Lucina stepped into the room. Her long, blue hair was coloured grey and red from ash and blood, there were several spots on her that looked as if a Risen had gotten to her, but all of that didn’t matter anymore as Cynthia looked into her face.

For she saw something most of them had already lost, something she had been about to let go, too.

She saw hope.

 

_Mama, Lucy has found a way. Maybe I can save you! Maybe I can save everyone and then none of this will ever happen. Then you’ll be there again and Papa too and Grima will never have awakened at all. Maybe everything will be as it was! It’s dangerous … But it’s a way!_

 

Her fingers were shaking as she he held onto the handle of her lance. Yes, she would do this! After all, he had to save everyone and she could only do that when she followed Lucy. A true hero faced all her enemies with courage, those who tried to do unspeakable things to her and her loved ones – and if she was no hero, what was she?           

“Have you stared at your weapon enough already, stupid?” hissed an oh so familiar voice next to her. Severa’s reddish brown eyes sparkled with annoyance as she was leaning on the sword she had rammed into the ground, obviously impatient. The mercenary had been the first one to volunteer when Lucina had asked who would travelled back to the past with her, though with a murmured  ‘if I have to’ nobody had really believed.

Confidently, Cynthia nodded, so hard that her silver pigtails – a lot shorter than Severa’s blond ones – noticeably bobbed up and down. And she really did tear her gaze away from the steel lance in her hand and looked at her pegasus Shiida instead – the pegasus that hat once belonged to her mother. Oh so long ago …

She gripped her weapon even tighter to calm down. The best thing about this journey was without a doubt being able to see her mother and father again and saving them before they could ever die! If that wasn’t a good reason to go through all the hardship they would probably face, there was no good reason at all.

“If you keep standing around here Lucina will be gone before we even reach the portal!” Could Severa do anything but complain? Probably not, Cynthia thought.

“You can start going there already! Didn’t even have to come with me in the first place,” she retorted. This super villain would not make her life even harder right now! Even though they would have a lot to do with each other on this journey, but she’d deal with that, Lucy and Gerome and Owain and everyone else would be there too, after all. Only Morgan had stayed home … Or at least Lucy had told him to. Only time would tell whether or not he had listened. “I’ll catch up to you either way!”    

Severa snorted. “Sure, you have a pegasus.”   

“You could have one, too! Although villains like you would rather need a wyvern,” Cynthia considered out loud. “Gerome probably won’t hand Miverva over … But I’m sure there are other wyverns around in the past!”      

The mercenary rolled her eyes and Cynthia had to appreciate how she didn’t utter another mean comment. “Come on now.” She started moving in the direction of their companions, those who were waiting in the cellar of the eastern palace in front of them, where Naga had opened the portal.

Yes. A journey to the past. Laurent had said that it was normal to be a bit afraid, it was a subconcious thing, and Cynthia hated her stupid, weak, unheroic subconcious.

But still … Some people said that heroes were never afraid. Sumia, however, had always told Cynthia how true heroes would realise their fears, embrace them, and face them.

She patted Shiida on the neck and jumped onto her back, following Severa.

 

_Mama, I’ll be with you again soon._

**Author's Note:**

> Nothing really happened but I still somehow cry whenever I read over the cursive parts ... I apologise from the bottom of my heart. But hey, it's kind of a hopeful oneshot, isn't it?


End file.
